Premium Indulgence

InBev is already beginning to see the benefits of last year's
merger of Belgian brewer Interbrew and Brazil's AmBev, with volume
sales in 2004 growing at more than twice the rate of the global
beer market as a whole. And...

Three of Europe's biggest beer makers have reported mixed results
this week, with Scottish & Newcastle, Carlsberg and Heineken
all underlining the need to cut costs and increase advertising
expenditure, especially for premium...

As growth in the premium bottled beer sector gallops ahead overall
beer consumption in Europe brewers are driving innovation in the
ingredients sector, encouraging firms to come up with novel
solutions to tackle the market. Starch...

Overproduction by New World wine producers has pushed down prices
over the last few years, taking a major toll on producers' margins.
But a growing trend towards premium wines could save the day, in
both established and emerging...

The US cola wars have traditionally been fought on just two fronts
- Coca-Cola holding one and PepsiCo the other. But now a new player
is about to join the fray, and Britain's Virgin Cola is hoping that
its decision to focus...

Brewers targeting the Russian beer market are increasingly shifting
their focus to premium lager, despite the fact that large numbers
of Russian consumers still cannot afford to buy it - an indication,
above all, of the strength of...

As the days of blindingly fast growth in the Russian beer industry
begin to ebb away the market is starting to show signs of maturity.
In turn it is the premium and super premium sectors that are
increasingly showing signs of promise...

Strong organic growth from the premium drinks business was one of
several key drivers of growth at Diageo, the UK company which is
now wholly focused on its beer, wine and spirits business. Smirnoff
Ice and other RTD brands performed...